stephen martyak
A southern boy, music lover, and longtime foodie, Stephen Martyak is foremost a designer. Formally trained as an Architect, he has extensive experience in high-end residential and commercial architecture and interiors, as well as lighting, furniture, and graphic design. He gained his early experience at Flavin Architects, a boutique residential firm in Boston and collaborated with designers from Paris, New York, and Vancouver. It was later that Stephen discovered his knack for restaurant design and deepened his understanding of the intimate relationship between design and construction while acting as the Director of Design for a Boston-based construction company.
In the fall of 2019, Stephen relocated to Hoboken, New Jersey with his husband, providing the opportunity to expand the studio's presence in New York City. Stephen holds a Bachelors Degree in Design Studies from the Boston Architectural College (Class of 2009 Valedictorian) and a Professional Master of Architecture Degree from Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD).
Launched in the fall of 2012, by principal Stephen Martyak (the "y" is silent), studiotyak is a concept design studio specializing in restaurants and entertainment venues. We work one-on-one with our clients to hone their visions into realized concepts; we gain a deep understanding of their operations to develop spaces with all end users in mind; we collaborate with other industry experts to guide our projects through construction; and we provide input on everything from name to uniforms to ensure we nail the vibe come opening and beyond.
Our studio quickly made its presence known on the Boston stage with the opening of The Sinclair, a rock club/restaurant hybrid in Harvard Square by New York-based The Bowery Presents, and Boston Chops, an urban steak bistro in the city's South End. That year Stephen was named one of Boston's Hottest Up and Comers by Zagat Boston in their "30 Under 30" list, the first designer to appear on the list nation wide.
Over the last decade we have brought numerous other concepts to life including Loretta's Last Call, Boston's first country music bar. The space was heavily influenced by Stephen's childhood love of country music and in 2015 was named one of the 21 Best Designed Restaurants in the Country by Thrillist.
While most projects start of as one-offs, we have had the opportunity to assist our clients in expanding several successful concepts into multi-unit local and regional chains. These projects include: Dram and Draught, a whiskey bar concept expanding throughout North Carolina; Tradesman, a coffee, cocktail, and pizza bar concept expanding in the Northeast; and El Jefe's Taqueria, a fast-casual build-your-own concept in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic.
Most recently, the studio opened two new live music venues once again with The Bowery Presents: Roadrunner, a 3,500 person capacity venue, in Boston and Racket, a 650 person capacity venue, across from Chelsea Market in Manhattan.